More Vit D info from Rheumatology News

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Volume 9, Issue 7, Page 13 (July 2010)

RA Patients May Need More Vitamin D Maintenance

Heidi Splete

Article Outline

High maintenance doses of vitamin D might be needed to retain the benefits of

intensive supplementation therapy in rheumatoid arthritis patients, based on

data from 89 adults.

Vitamin D deficiency is common in RA patients, but the effectiveness of

intensive supplementation vs. maintenance therapy in these patients has not been

well studied, according to Dr. Uzma Haque of s Hopkins University in

Baltimore.

Dr. Haque and her colleagues collected data on levels of 25(OH)D in patients

treated at the s Hopkins Arthritis Center between January 2009 and November

2009. Their mean age was 53 years, 82% were women, and 83% were white. Overall,

52 patients (58%) met criteria for vitamin D deficiency, defined as 25(OH)D

levels of 30 ng/mL or less. Of these, 35 patients completed 8 weeks of intensive

therapy (50,000 IU/week of ergocalciferol); of these, 33 (94%) had sufficient

vitamin D levels after intensive therapy. The average increase in vitamin D

levels was 21.1 ng/mL. These patients were then randomized to either 16 weeks of

maintenance therapy or a placebo. Only 70% of 25 patients who completed 8 weeks

of maintenance therapy (50,000 IU/month) had sufficient vitamin D levels, and

only 6 of 17 patients (35%) who completed 16 weeks of maintenance therapy were

vitamin D sufficient.

Although intensive vitamin D supplementation increased vitamin D levels in RA

patients, standard maintenance therapy may be insufficient to maintain these

levels over time, the researchers noted. “Our data suggest that most RA

patients require higher maintenance doses to sustain vitamin D sufficiency,â€

they said.

Disclosures: Dr. Haque stated that she had no financial disclosures.